The sunshine is in full supply this summer, and enjoying the light the season brings is wonderful. The added light makes our homes feel effortlessly bigger and brighter. But before you know it, the darker days of fall and winter will arrive, and our big, bright homes will begin to feel like small, dark, cramped spaces.
Natural light has a host of health and mood benefits for ourselves and also brings the benefit of making our homes look and feel bigger, which can further benefit our mood. But how do we extend these benefits into the darker seasons?
Luckily there are a few tips and tricks to making your home look bigger and brighter all year round. Try some of these strategies and enjoy the light and spaciousness they bring.
Brighter Bulbs
As any real estate agent knows, the lighting in your home can significantly impact the look and feel of your home. Whether you’re listing Whitby houses for sale or planning to stick around and enjoy the extra light, changing your lightbulbs can have a considerable effect.
The first thing to look at is the color temperature of your bulbs. Most people immediately think of the wattage when looking to increase brightness, but color temperature plays a significant role. Soft white provides a warm and cozy atmosphere. Warm white, on the other hand, casts a yellow-white. Daylight gives off a bluish tone, and bright white is energetic. These different tones can alter the feeling of a room. An effective strategy is to use different toned lightbulbs depending on what the space is used for.
Fresh Paint
A coat of paint is an easy and affordable way to refresh your house. Dark and medium paints absorb the light, so if you want to brighten things up, choose a lighter color like white or light gray. Lighter tones have the added benefit of softening edges, making the room appear physically bigger as well.
Reflect on It
The effect of mirrors in both brightening and amplifying space is really a marvel. A mirror can be placed strategically to bounce and amplify natural light around a room and make it feel visibility larger than it is. They can be used to reach into dark corners and placed across from light receiving windows to take advantage of every drop of light.
Lighten Up the Furniture
As we discussed, lighter colors have a softening effect, so lighter colored furniture can really help to open the space up. If you have dark floors, you can even use a light-colored rug to really brighten things up.
In addition to lighter colors, lightening up the amount of furniture can help to create a more spacious feeling. Removing excess furniture and clutter creates more space and makes rooms appear bigger than they are.
Try using these tricks to bring lighter into your home and make it feel big and bright, no matter what season it is or how long the days are.
Images from Casa Suzu by ZDA | Zupelli Design Architecture – See the full story on ArchiScene
